Footnotes, headnotes, sidenotes, or other margin-borne annotations are widely employed in books and other printed or electronically viewed publications to present supporting or supplemental information to a primary text in an easily accessible format. Annotations are commonly set in a smaller typesize than the primary text, and may be set in different typefaces, in bold or cursive, or have various formatting peculiarities to distinguish the annotation from the primary text. Ideally, such annotations allow an author to provide a reader with supplementary textual or graphic explanations related to the primary text, while not requiring the reader to unnecessarily change focus (as parenthetical remarks, or lengthy subordinate explanatory clauses, so often do) from the primary text.
Unfortunately, physical limits to the size of margins, typesize, and density of text legible on paper can limit the amount of information one is able to present as an annotation. Annotations may be too large to fit into margin, footnote, or headnote, and even when present can interrupt or slow reading speed. What is needed is an annotation system that allows for viewing of annotations only when desired by a user, with sufficient flexibility to quickly and smoothly present annotations in context to the primary text.
Because of its ability to reformat screen displayed pages of text and graphics, a computer supporting a high quality monitor or flat panel display can greatly expand the range of permissible annotation techniques, allowing authors to somewhat alleviate problems with limited margin space. Accordingly, the present invention provides a method for dynamically presenting a primary body of data displayable on a screen and a supporting body of data relatable to the primary body of data. The primary body of data can include an annotation tag associated with a specific region and referring to the supporting body of data. When a region of user focus at or near the annotation tag is selected in the primary body of data, the supporting body of data is dynamically displayed (as long as user focus is maintained) and data present in the primary body of data is concurrently modified to enhance presentation of the supporting body of data. When user focus changes, the annotation tag is replaced and the primary body of data reverts to its original format.
As will be appreciated, data can include both text and graphics. The present invention encompasses primarily textual applications such as novels, software code, or poetry, as well as primarily graphical applications such as maps, photographs, or geographic information systems. Applications employing substantial amounts of both text and graphics, such as illustrated textbooks, instruction manuals, or spreadsheets, are also suitable candidates for use of the method of the present invention.
Similarly, the annotation tag can be primarily textual, primarily graphical, or some mixture of textual and graphical elements. Contemplated annotation tags include numeric tags (e.g. footnote numerals), greeked or unreadably small interlinear or marginal text, symbols (e.g. an asterisk), hypertext links, or thumbnail graphics or drawings in the margin. In certain preferred applications, the annotation tags can be a very small, yet still readable, version of the supporting body of data. In other applications, lines, curves, or graphical or textual animations can allow a user reviewing a primary body of data to identify the availability of supporting data. While typically a visual cue, in certain applications the annotation tag can be visually imperceptible to the user until a pointer or other indicator of user focus is directed at a region about the annotation tag. In certain applications, annotation tags can be based on auditory or tactile feedback, with, for example, sound, operation of force feedback mice, or tactile displays providing audio or tactile annotations.
User focus on an annotation tag can be determined by tracking the position of a conventional screen displayed pointer maneuverable by mouse, stylus, or keyboard, by use of touch sensitive overlays to a screen, eye or head tracking systems, or any other conventional mechanism for reliably determining a user focus on a region of a screen display. Initiating dynamic display of supporting information at the user focus can be in response to user initiated mouse clicks, keyboard input, finger taps, duration (e.g. mouse cursor held still on or adjacent to an annotation tag for one tenth of a second to about two seconds, with one second being typical), or any other suitable input scheme for confirming a user desire to view supporting bodies of data.
Modification of the primary body of data (in response to user focus) to enhance presentation of the supporting body of data while retaining a unobstructed (or at least minimally obstructed) view of the primary body of data requires accommodating the supporting body of data within the primary body of data. Accommodation requires that the supporting body of data "negotiate" with the primary body of data to determine suitable adjustments to position, orientation, sizing, coloring, spatial morphology, or other typographical or graphical characteristics of the primary or supporting body of data. Accommodation overcomes a major problem associated with conventional hypertext window or "balloon help" techniques. Such annotation techniques simply overlay a small graphic or window over a primary body of data, often covering necessary information in the primary body of data. In contrast, the present invention conducts a negotiation between the primary body of data and the supporting body of data to determine suitable alterations to position, size, color, or spatial morphology of text or graphics that best present salient portions of the primary body of data, while still allowing viewing of the supporting body of data. Ideally, view obstruction of both the primary body of data and the supporting body of data can be minimized, although in certain embodiments partial obstruction of the primary body of data may be necessary to accommodate presentation of salient information.
Accommodation of the supporting body of data can be through overlay or spatial morphing of the primary body of data. An overlay presentation replaces the annotation tag with supporting data, while concurrently identifying the annotated region of the primary body by suitable callouts, lines, markers, or animations that place the annotation in the margin, interline, or interparagraph region, but still direct a user's attention to the related region of the primary body. Alternatively, the region of the primary body subject to annotation can be made visually distinct by a suitable color or font change. This allows, for example, a region of the primary body to be recolored, hue adjusted, or "grayed out", with the supporting data of the annotation positioned to lay on top of the now visually distinct region. Overlay presentations generally do not require repositioning words, lines, or paragraphs, or graphical elements in the primary body of data, instead relying on available spaces (e.g. either "empty" marginal space or space created by "graying out" text) in the primary body of data.
In contrast, spatial morphing of the primary body of data generally requires displacement or differential resizing of lines and words in a vicinity of an annotation tag subject to user focus. The positions of words, lines, paragraphs, or graphical elements in the primary body of data adjust (using an animated transition) as needed to accommodate the supporting body of data. This allows supporting bodies of data to be presented at full readable size, while still retaining the context of the primary body of data. This may include dynamically decreasing typesize of lines in the region near the annotation tag, or providing intraline or interline intercalations of auxiliary symbols, words, or sentences. Words, lines, paragraphs, graphical elements, or margins can be moved to make room for annotations or other supporting data.
As those skilled in the art will appreciate, methods of the present invention can be employed to aid in creating marginal notes, interlineations, graphics, handwriting, and other suitable annotations. A primary body of data is displayable on a screen, permitting a user to select a region of user focus for annotation. Using a keyboard, pen operated touchpad, voice control software, or other suitable input device, the user provides supporting data input for association with the region of user focus. To aid in creating the annotation, the screen displayed body of primary data is modified. Modification can include overlay presentations in which the area to be annotated (i.e. associated with the supporting body of data input by the user) is color highlighted or grayed out, or alternatively, can include spatial morphing presentation techniques in which lines of the primary body of data are moved to accommodate positioning of textual or handwriting input.
Additional functions, objects, advantages, and features of the present invention will become apparent from consideration of the following description and drawings of preferred embodiments.